Antim Movie Review: Salman Khan’s swag, Aayush’s applaudable attempt & climax are the saviors of this grand film

Fans were intrigued when it was announced that Bollywood ’s Bhaijaan Salman Khan will be joining hands with his actor brother-in-law Aayush Sharma in Mahesh Manjrekar ’s action thriller, Antim : The Final Truth. It had almost all ingredients of being a super hit-- a remake of Marathi hit Mulshi Pattern with a twist, stunning star cast and a filmmaker who has impressed the audience in the past. All these aspects left us with quite high expectations and Aayush’s transformation, which we witnessed in the trailer, got us even more excited. Well, Antim finally arrived in theatres today after a long wait and it wasn’t exactly what we had in mind.

The film begins with a little back story-- Aayush aka Rahul is the son of a farmer who was bullied to sell his land, whereas Salman is a righteous cop named Rajveer Singh. After his father is kicked out of his job, Rahul becomes a manual labor. One thing leads to another-- no spoilers here-- and Aayush’s character turns into one of the most feared gangsters of the state. Every now and then, he lands in jail and even though he gets quick bail, we get to see an intense interaction between him and Rajveer. Also one major clash between the actors, which leaves you in awe of their smoking hot physique! Clearly a lot of hard work has gone here and we should acknowledge it. The movie progresses, too quickly at times to digest, and finally we reach an incredible climax which almost makes this action thriller a paisa vasool watch. There is one particular scene where Aayush and Salman come together, one standing behind the other, which was shot very well.

Starting with the performances-- it is evident that Aayush has worked really hard for the film and his transformation from a lover boy in Loveyatri to a convincing deadly gangster is applaudable. There are some scenes where we felt he could tone down the dramatics a little, but all in all he has done an impressive job and it only gets better post the interval. Also, kudos to the young actor for acing Rahul’s menacing look. Loved it! Coming to Salman Khan-- almost all of his entries hit you as hard as a grand introductory scene would, and he looks pretty convincing in a police officer’s uniform. For some reason, most emotional and action scenes look believable when we see Salman in them and we are sure fans will be grateful to the makers for increasing his screen time, unlike the cop’s character in the original Marathi film. However, a few of his dialogues were unnecessary and may leave fans scratching their heads.

The story in the background is about farmers, how they are forced to sell their lands, and a police officer who is trying to make a difference by pitting villains against one another. But mostly the spotlight is on Rahul, his career as a gangster and also his love track with Manda, played beautifully by Mahima Makwana. In the end he loses everything and there is also an unexpected twist! The story is pretty good for entertainment purposes, but seems irrelevant every now and then. Meanwhile, the editing is not as precise and clean as we expected. Then there is the background score, which feels too loud at most points. The different camera angles, on the other hand, are wonderful! They help in giving the film a grand feel and make it almost a worthy cinematic experience.

Final thoughts- Antim failed to exceed the expectations that the trailer and cast had given us, but succeeded in showing Salman as well as Aayush in a different light and unexpected avatars. While we can’t get over Aayush’s menacing look, seeing Salman in a subtle character was like a breath of fresh air.